Simple Site-Built Mantels

by Gary Katz

The first mantelpiece I ever
built was just a simple shelf.
I used a 6-inch-wide pine
board for the shelf, 4-inch
crown for the cornice, and a 2-inch
strip of pine for the "soffit" beneath
the crown. It only took a couple
hours from start to finish, but I was
very pleased with it. Since then,
building mantelpieces has always
been a favorite job of mine. I've built
fabulously expensive hardwood
behemoths and cut-rate specials, but
have learned that classy mantelpieces
can always be created for a modest
investment in time and material. To
build the mantel in this article, for
example, I bought about $100 of
materials from a local lumberyard —
mostly MDF moldings as well as